THE HUFFINGTON POST UNVEILS TOP 50 AMERICAN POLITICAL ANIMALS IN CONJUNCTION WITH USA NETWORK'S HIGH-PROFILE LIMITED SERIES EVENT "POLITICAL ANIMALS" PREMIERING SUNDAY, JULY 15

In Between the Primary and General Election Seasons, Americans Get a Chance to Vote on Their Favorite Political Animals of All Time

NEW YORK - JULY 12, 2012 - The Huffington Post, the leading source of news, politics, opinion, entertainment, community and digital information, unveils today its "Top 50 Political Animals of All Time." The list coincides with the launch of USA Network's limited series event POLITICAL ANIMALS, premiering on Sunday, July 15 at 10/9c.

Curated by The Huffington Post staff, the "Top 50 Political Animals" list includes the savviest, revered and sometimes feared American leaders who changed rules or charted new courses and had a significant influence and impact on politics, policy and the nation. The list includes presidents, members of Congress, candidates, advisors, mavericks and trailblazers, such as: Martin Luther King, Jr., Lyndon B. Johnson, Eleanor Roosevelt, Karl Rove, Gloria Steinem and others. For the full list, go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/politicalanimals

Over the next month, renowned historians, political experts, pundits and thought leaders will provide commentary and insights on the list, including choosing their own Top Ten. To kick off the dialogue, today Tom Brokaw, one of the most trusted and respected figures in broadcast journalism and special correspondent for NBC News, revealed his top political animals.

"As the presidential election approaches and we prepare to decide on the next chapter in America's future, there's a lot to be learned from those who have defined our political past," said Arianna Huffington, president and editor-in-chief, The Huffington Post Media Group. "For better or worse, directly or indirectly, every person on our list has had an impact on our politics. By bringing them together on one list, at a time when the need for leadership is on the minds of all Americans, we hope it will be the starting point for many great conversations."

Visitors to huffingtonpost.com can also rank their favorite political animals, discuss who they picked and why, and see in real time how their choices compare with others'. Each day during the next month, USA also will highlight political animals from The Huffington Post's list at politicalanimals.tv. Through on-air spots and social media outreach, USA will encourage viewers to cast their votes and rank the Top 50 list. The Huffington Post and USA will announce America's choice for the Top Political Animals in mid-August.

From creator Greg Berlanti, POLITICAL ANIMALS pulls back the curtain on the polished facade of politics to reveal a fractured family. Despite intense public scrutiny, this dynasty can't escape the magnetic pull of the high stakes world of sex, greed and politics. In her first television series regular role, two-time Golden Globe(R) winner and three-time Academy Award(R) nominee Sigourney Weaver stars as Secretary of State Elaine Barrish. In the wake of a divorce from her philandering ex-president husband (Ciaran Hinds), Barrish tries to keep her family together while dealing with crises of the State Department and a hungry DC journalist (Carla Gugino) who is bent on destroying her. The series also stars Oscar(R), Emmy(R), Tony(R) and Golden Globe(R) winner Ellen Burstyn, James Wolk, Sebastian Stan and Brittany Ishibashi.

The Huffington Post is a Pulitzer Prize-winning source of breaking news, features, and entertainment, as well as a highly engaged community for opinion and conversation. The Huffington Post has 39.3 million monthly unique visitors (comScore May, 2012) posting over 6.5 million comments each month. The site has over 30,000 bloggers -- from politicians, students and celebrities to academics, parents and policy experts -- who contribute in real-time on the subjects they are most passionate about. The Huffington Post has editions in the UK, Canada, Quebec, France, and Spain, with L'Huffington Post Italia scheduled to launch this year.

The #1 network in all of basic cable, USA Network is seen in 100 million U.S. homes. USA is a leader in scripted programming with a powerful stable of originals including POLITICAL ANIMALS, SUITS, NECESSARY ROUGHNESS, WHITE COLLAR, ROYAL PAINS, BURN NOTICE, PSYCH, COVERT AFFAIRS, COMMON LAW and FAIRLY LEGAL. The network offers 52 weeks of spectacular live television with WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW and is home to the best in blockbuster theatrical films, a broad portfolio of acquired series and entertainment events. A trailblazer in digital innovation and storytelling, USA is defining, driving and setting the industry standard for Social TV. USA is a program service of NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, a division of NBCUniversal. The award-winning website is located at www.usanetwork.com. Characters Welcome.